As public hearings for London Gatwick airport’s northern runway resume, researchers from the Netherlands have discovered increased inhaler use among children living near Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport.
Proximity to a major airport can result in breathing tens of thousands of ultrafine particles (UFP) per cubic centimetre of air when the wind is unfavourable.
The study involved installing air pollution measurement equipment in three primary schools, each about a kilometre from Schiphol. Researchers conducted weekly lung function tests on 161 children from these schools and 19 asthmatic children living nearby. Since the schools were located to the north and south of the airport, the children were exposed to airport UFP at varying times.
Children were also taught to measure their lung function at home, both in the morning and evening. These home records revealed significant findings, including symptoms like coughing, wheezing, and phlegm.
Prof Gerard Hoek of Utrecht University, who led the study, said: “On days with high aviation-related UFP, children experienced substantially more respiratory symptoms and used more symptom-relieving medication.” These symptoms included coughing, wheeziness and phlegm.
The study found that wind direction alone did not reliably predict UFP exposure, meaning parents and children were likely unaware of their day-to-day exposure levels. Additionally, UFP and soot from traffic were linked to symptoms and changes in morning lung tests.
In 2021, the Dutch Health Council and the World Health Organisation (WHO) emphasised the growing evidence of UFP’s health impacts, based on 75 studies. However, due to technical differences between studies, the WHO has not yet established a standard for UFP exposure.
Professor Anna Hansell of the University of Leicester, who was not involved in the Dutch study, said: “People near airports are getting large doses of very small UFPs as seen in the Schiphol study. It may not be possible to get a full picture of health effects of UFPs until we can conduct large-scale epidemiological studies. In the meantime, reduction of exposure to particles from all sources is prudent to protect health.”
A 2020 study of four European capitals found that aviation UFP from peripheral airports reached city centres.
In the UK, UFP from Heathrow is detectable in central London, nearly 20km away, and across the western part of the city. Similar findings have been reported near airports in the US, including Boston’s Logan International Airport, but these measurements do not fully capture the experience of living close to an airport.
In 2018 and 2019, I led a research team that measured UFP around Gatwick, including in the nearby town of Horley, home to 23,000 people. We found that UFP levels 500 metres downwind of the airport exceeded those at the kerb of London’s busiest roads, highlighting the significant impact of airport pollution on local air quality.
Victoria Chester, a Green party local councillor, described living close to Gatwick: “I live very close to where airport expansion will most heavily impact Horley. Living near the airport you become used to the noise and smell but on some days it’s so bad you can taste the pollution in the air and when the wind blows in your direction it really stinks.”
A Gatwick spokesperson said: “The health impact assessment within the northern runway project environmental statement includes an appropriate assessment of UFP. London Gatwick is committed to participating in national aviation industry body studies of UFP emissions at airports, including those reviewing how monitoring could be undertaken. We have put forward a voluntary contribution to fund work should the government introduce standards.”
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